Canyon del Colca

High on the list of the most amazing things I´ve done on this trip and in life in general: Canyon del Colca. Debatable whether or not it´s the deepest canyon in the world because the so-called deepest canyon, nearby Cotahuasi, apparently doesn´t fit the qualifications of a canyon. So while it´s being debated, we´ll say I hiked the deepest canyon in the world.

My trek was a three-day excursion that began with a long bus ride (ugh) out of Arequipa to Cabanaconde. After a typical Peruvian lunch, we trekked down the 3,269 m (10,725 ft) to the town of San Juan de Chuccho at the bottom of the canyon.


"The team" (all very cool kids) and I stayed in some amazing cabañas then took a leisurely hike the following day to another site at the bottom of the canyon. Here´s the team enjoying a little breakfast before heading out.


The other site happened to be an oasis paradise (I swear, just check the sign).

So we chilled out at the oasis and swam in the hot springs for a day.

This was a nice way to prepare for our last day: the ascent out of the canyon. To avoid the heat (yes, even though it´s probably freezing in Seattle by now, it was crazy hot in the canyon), we woke up at 2:30 a.m. and headed up at 3:00 in the dark. We hiked in complete darkness except for the three flashlights we had for all seven of us. It gave me chills when we stopped to rest and I shined my light into the canyon, only to have it disappear in the darkness of the abyss below. After three hours we neared the top just as the sun was beginning to light the canyon. What an incredible sight.

I felt like I had accomplished an incredible feat (to be fair, I kinda did). I can´t describe the feeling, but it´s one I hope everyone gets to experience at least once.

Here are the rest of the pics of the canyon for your viewing pleasure. Don´t mind the string of pics of desert plants - I´m just dorky and wanted to compare them to the ones back in the AZ desert.